101 Dalmations

We went to see the play 101 Dalmations today. We had a great time, and our little Dalmation really enjoyed it!

Happy Halloween!

Here is my Ariel. The bear is part of a class project for pre-school. Each student gets to take him home for a weekend and then take pictures and journal about his time with them, like Flat Stanley. Anyway, he went dressed as Ariel too!

They're Baa-aaack!!

I am going to pick up Megan and Ben at the airport this afternoon! I am so excited to see them. We haven't seen them since their wedding in April.

Fashion Show

I just had to post a few pics of Kate modeling a new outfit.

K and Me

My mom took these pics while she was here. There's nothing special to say about them, but I love how vibrant the color is.

Soccer Girl

We started soccer a few weeks ago. Well, I say we "started" soccer, but really, we had two practices, and then a three-week rainout! The girls had their first game tonight, and it was a trip! They hadn't met in weeks or touched a soccer ball since their second practice, and they had never seen a real goal or field. At least at this age (under-5) all the girls are pretty much in the same boat -- clueless! We don't keep score, and that's a good thing!

See if you can pick out K in the pics below.

Color Float

K had a project for her pre-school class. The assignment was to cover a box with her favorite color of paper, attach a string to create a float (or more accurately, a "drag"), and affix stickers, buttons, and other 3-D objects. Thankfully Nana was visiting last weekend, and was able to do most of it! It was fun to pick out all the things to put on it. Guess what K's favorite color is?

First Day of School

It's been awhile. I'll play catch-up when I can.

Today was the first day of pre-school. K is in the "Divers" class, and had a terrific day with all the other 4-year-olds.

Princess Tea Party



K had her princess tea party today.

We had seven other little girls there at the tea room.




I was a bit nervous about how all the girls would behave, but they were good as gold! They all wore their favorite dress-up dresses. The girls got to drink pink "tea" (lemonade) which they poured themselves from ceramic teapots.



They had flower-shaped sandwiches, fruit, and muffins. Then the birthday girl got to open her gifts. She loved everything she got, including lots of Barbie and princess things, a stamp set, and pool toys. Then the girls got to eat cake.



After all were through, they were able to do a craft. They strung foam beads onto a bracelet. They concentrated so carefully, and were all very proud of their creations.



It was a great day, and all the girls had a wonderful time. They all looked so beautiful!

Visit from Nana

My mother came to visit this week, and her birthday gifts to K were a trip to Build-a-Bear, and a princess dress from the Disney store to wear to her princess tea party on Saturday. The "bear" she built is a dog, and she picked an Ariel outfit for it. It's the ugliest thing you've ever seen, and she named it, what else, Princess.

She wanted to be Sleeping Beauty, so not only did she get the dress, but also shoes, tiara, necklace, bracelet, and nightgown!! As you can see, she loves her new outfit, and will eagerly wear them to her birthday party.

Gifts from Mom and Dad


Tonight we let K open her presents. We kept it pretty simple, since we knew grandparents would inflict Operation Gift Explosion upon us. We just gave K a few books, a bank, and a princess scooter. As you can tell, she was thrilled!!

Birthday Girl

Happy 4th birthday!!

Ballerina Girl

K has her final ballet class last week. The parents were able to go into the room and watch (usually we stay in the waiting area and watch on a closed-circuit TV). The kids all did a great job! I'll post a video soon. K has loved ballet, and we will sign up again next year.

These are the professional ballet pics they took. I am waiting for my copies to come in, so here are the watermarked ones in the meantime. All photos courtesy B&E Photo.

Goodbye, Sampson

Today we lost a dear friend. We had Sampson for 8 years, and today we had to say goodbye. He was between 12 and 15 years old, and he was having a very hard time getting up. We could boost him up and he'd be OK for a while, but it was so hard to watch him struggle each time. The vet said we could do x-rays and try a special joint diet, but at his advanced age, I just didn't think it was fair to keep trying things for him that may or may not work.

He was such a handsome boy!


From the moment we brought K home from the hospital, Sampson watched over her like a hawk. He was so patient with her, even as she learned to climb and walk, and pulled all over him. He never minded a bit.





K told us that God has a new dog now. I love that.

He was a truly special dog, and he will be sorely missed. Our remaining lab, Montana, had been a little clingy lately, but secretly I think she is glad to be an only dog.

Still Trying

We get asked the question a lot, "Is she your only child?" When we say yes, the next question inevitably is, "Do you think you'll have another?" We can only answer that with a wistful, "I hope so."

I never dreamed I would have an only child, or children separated by five years. But I have learned, as much as a planner as I am, that I cannot plan everything. Some things are apparently not up to me (this was news to me). We are currently in month 25 of trying. We know we have two issues to deal with: infertility and recurring pregnancy loss. We really don't know the reason for the infertility. I am on my third and final month of Clomid to see if that can stimulate something, but beyond that, we don't know what the answer is.

I do know that once I do get pregnant, I will have to take a daily heparin shot. For some reason, I have a crazy clotting issue, and my body starts to clot around the embryo and chokes it off, resulting in a miscarriage. We hope that heparin injections will counteract that.

They always say you conceive when you "stop trying." We'll see if that's the plan. We'll give it a few more months, but we are not going to go to heroic lengths to have another baby. We just can't afford it, and I just don't feel right about going through all of that for something that may not even work. I know lots of people that have been through IV and other procedures successfully, but it's just not for us. We also have a bit of a timeline. Gary just turned 40, which I know is not old for a father by any means, but we are looking ahead at retirement, and we do not want to retire with a child in college. So, if this is going to happen, it needs to happen fairly soon.

I am so grateful for K, and am amazed that I was even able to have her at all. If she is an only child, I'll be very happy with my small family. But I don't want to give up yet.

Swimming Kudos

A few quotes from K's swimming instructor tonight. I'm so proud!

"She's such a good listener."

"You just say something and she does it."

"She's a great student!"

"She's so likeable!"

Swimming Lessons

K started this year's swimming lessons yesterday. She did very well, and was not scared to put her face in the water. She even went all the way to the bottom to retrieve diving rings. We have lessons this week and next week, and then we're all set for summer!

Modeling her new swim gear:



with cover-up





and without



K talked the instructor's ear off during the lesson! The instructor asked, "Is she always like this?" and I had to honestly reply, "Yes! 24 hours a day!" It's one thing to think your own kid talks a lot, but when other people start to mention it, it really hits home!

Home Again, Home Again

K and I went home this weekend. It was Memorial weekend, but it was also my mom's birthday, so it was a good reason to visit.

K loves to use the bay window in my mom's dining room as a stage. She closes the curtains, says "Ladies and Gentleman, now the show will begin!" and then does some improv-interpretive dance-singing entertainment. This time she dragged out some baby toys for added excitement. Mom is doing some renovations, and she had planned to remove the bay window, but K loves it so much that she is keeping it!



We decided to go to the local zoo. They've done a lot of work on it, and for a medium-sized town, it's actually a very nice zoo. The last time we went, K wasn't quite two, so you can see how much she's grown. She got a lot out of it. We saw the most beautiful peacock, she got to feed the giraffe again, and she posed like a loon whenever the camera was out.







I snapped this picture in a friend's backyard. I was trying to get landscaping ideas, but K just made herself at home, so of course I had to take her picture.



This last picture is back home. K made herself a little fort in front of the TV. She was quite cozy in there!

Banquet Girl

G's high school orchestra had their banquet tonight. It was a semi-formal affair, so K wore her flower girl dress (might as well get another use out of it)! She could not wait for the DJ to begin! She remembered the dancing from last year! The banquet had a Hawaiian theme, since the orchestra traveled there on Spring Break this year. It was a lot of fun, but of course no one had more fun than K!!